New hope for Afghanistan

Afghanistan's future will be defined at a summit in London starting tomorrow.  This comes at a time when the US and its allies are rethinking their approach in the war with the Taliban.

Ministers from nations supporting the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) will meet with United Nations officials and other world leaders in the hopes of defining a new cohesive strategy.

The conference will be co-hosted by UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Also attending will be US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama's Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Ambassador Richard Holbrooke.

The US delegation is expected to reinforce Mr Obama’s new strategies in an attempt to reverse the Taliban's momentum and stabilize the country's government. US tactics have changed dramatically in the past year, particularly since General Stanley McChrystal took over as ISAF Commander in June 2009.

Strategy

General McChrystal has cut back on the use of air strikes and heavy weapons to win over the Afghan population.  He has also put in place new regulations to limit night raids. General McChrystal recently expressed hopes for a negotiated peace with the Taliban.

“As a soldier, my personal feeling is that there’s been enough fighting,” he said. “What I think we do is try to shape conditions which allow people to come to a truly equitable solution to how the Afghan people are governed.”

The United Nations has, at the request of President Karzai, removed the names of five former Afghan Taliban officials from its sanctions list in an effort to reach out to them.

It is hoped that along with these new strategies, the London conference will ensure the continued financial commitment of NATO countries and lay out a clear path for non-military assistance in Afghanistan.

The meeting coincides with a new report published by eight aid agencies warning of the growing militarisation of the aid effort in the country.